Sunday, May 01, 2005

trio for piano, clarinet, and cello, allegroo, Brahms

I've been listening to this movement lately. Starting in A minor, The cello introduces the first theme, and then the clarinet and piano come in together. The clarinet and cello have these very sustained notes while the piano has a really bouncy triplet counterpart. This is a beautiful theme, with a very fluid and upward feeling. The cello also introduces the second subject (which is in the dominant key), and this theme is developed in the middle section of the movement. Many times the cello and clarinet are played in unison, and then suddenly break away from each other. The clarinet finishes the piece with this running 16th note section, ritards, and then ends on the fifth scale degree.